An Unwanted Adventure
by sistaa-krimzz
Summary: Sequel to "Not All Monsters Breathe Fire" Post BOTFA, year 2969. Guarded, temperamental Riley and shy, spontaneous Shayla stumble across a camp full of smelly, hairy men. Why does a short man in a funny hat keep smirking at them, and what is it about Shayla's past that draws the dark powers of Middle Earth towards her? Romance (Bofur/OC, Kili/OC), angst, violence and some swearing.
1. Natural Remedies

"How much further do we have to walk?" Riley groaned, her feet dragging across the undergrowth of the forest floor. She despised being outdoors; it wasn't the trees or the ridiculous amounts of odd animals that they came across unexpectedly that made her uncomfortable. It was rather the vast openness of the area that she was in, without any idea of where she was, that had her feeling insecure and unsafe.

Unsafe was probably the wrong choice of word though. Shayla knew these woods more than any person she had ever met. It was the land that she had grown up on with her mother and father; there was nowhere else on this planet where her friend felt more comfortable, and both of them knew it.

The cause of Riley's fear was rather founded in her unease. She liked feeling sheltered and secure. Straying far from the blocks surrounding work and her and Shayla's apartment was not something that she enjoyed. Hell, she had never even left the city before this weekend.

Now, she was gallivanting through the damn wilderness in an attempt to _clear her mind_.

_Right_, she thought sarcastically.

Shayla had said that it was important that both of the girls took a break from reality. It had seemed like a fantastic idea at the time; Riley was expecting to go away to the coast, to stay at a four-star resort where they could drink martinis and let their eyes stray towards the bronzed up men that flooded the beaches and resorts. It was the middle of Spring after all, and everyone was taking full advantage of the beautiful weather.

Everyone except for Shayla and Riley.

They had trekked for the entire day through a forest that offered no relief from the ever-warming spring time breeze. The chirping of birds was unrelenting, and the thickness of pollen that drifted through the air almost a nightmare for Riley. She was really not enjoying the combination of her allergies and the anxiety she felt in being in such an unknown place.

"You are such a sook!" Shayla exclaimed lightly, her pace slightly faster than Riley's. She was walking through the trees several steps ahead of Riley, her head constantly lifting to observe the rooftop canopies above them both.

Shayla was nearly the polar opposite of Riley. She loved to be outside, feeling more content with life amongst the trees than anywhere else. When she was little, her parents would take her out of school frequently to go on camping trips to the Nature Reserve when the weather was nice.

The reserve she had lived close to was beautiful; it was full of incredible life and trees older than her grandparents. When she was a teenager, Shayla would explore waterfalls and rivers by herself, finding a strong sense of independence. She was a mostly shy girl, though when she finally became comfortable with her surroundings, there was nothing that could stop her.

Shayla and Riley were less of girls and more of young women. The former was twenty-four years old, the latter being twenty-five years of age. Riley thought about her slightly younger friend, her eyes watching Shayla as she inspected trees and random rocks that littered the ground.

"Seriously Shayla; how much further is this damn place? I need to sit down and rest!" Riley complained, not hiding her frustration and annoyance. Shayla had promised to take her to a camping spot close to a waterfall, though Riley was beginning to doubt they knew where they were going. The younger woman just seemed happy in bouncing around everywhere and exploring each inch of the forest.

Riley appreciated and respected Shayla's love for the environment, though it was incredibly annoying. There was nothing more than Riley wanted to do than to go straight home and jump into the high pressure shower in the apartment that the girls shared.

Beads of sweat begun to drip from Riley's forehead, and she felt her light blue tee sticking to the sheen of sweat between her shoulder blades and down her spine. _Gross,_ she thought. This wasn't her idea of fun whatsoever.

Shayla didn't reply, and Riley let out an exasperated sigh once more. She knew exactly why her younger friend had decided a spontaneous trip back to the expansive reserve that spread nearby to her home town. The fact that Shayla missed the wilderness was only a small reason; the petite girl who was now bending down and observing a patch of violet flowers felt very connected to the land.

Her father was Indigenous Australian, and therefore he held a strong value for the nature that surrounded them. While her mother was not of Indigenous decent, she understood her husband's beliefs and too developed a strong sense of being entwined with the sap that coursed through the trees, and the water that flowed effortlessly through the streams.

Shayla grew up close to her parents; she loved them dearly, but it was when she turned twenty-three when she wondered if there was anything more to her life. It was another spontaneous decision that led her to giving up her job as a waitress in order to move to the city.

There, she had found a job as an accountant. It wasn't anything too special, but it made her feel independent and responsible for once in her adult life, and she enjoyed that feeling. It was at Turners Accountants where Riley and Shayla met. Almost as if it were meant to happen, Riley had just moved into an apartment closer to her work, and needed someone to help in sharing the rent. Shayla was only living out of a small motel room, so she was grateful when an offer came from Riley to become flatmates.

Riley almost scowled to herself. _If only I hadn't have given Shayla a place to live, I wouldn't be roaming around in some smelly forest_, she thought to herself. As soon as the words flitted through her mind, however, she knew she didn't mean them.

After all, the reason Shayla had brought them both out here was for Riley's benefit.

"No mobile phones, no distractions, and_ no_ narcissistic men," Shayla had said while she packed backpacks full of camping gear. She understood Shayla's logic, but Riley had a sick feeling that had constantly present in her stomach since two nights ago.

"Maybe I should have brought my phone Shayla. What if I get an important phone call?" Shayla turned around and gazed at her with deep brown eyes, seeing straight through Riley's façade. She knew exactly why she wanted her phone.

Shayla closed the distance between them both, standing firmly in front of the taller Riley. Riley felt a twinge of guilt in her heart; her friend was just trying to help her, and she was being more than a little selfish. Shayla's expression softened only slightly as she considered the pained emotions play out in Riley's bright blue eyes.

"What, so you can text that asshole and ask what _you_ have done wrong? I don't think so." Riley's anger flared at the smaller girl. Shayla turned on her heel and continued, her frizzy dark brown hair bouncing atop her shoulders.

Riley's anger took over quickly. Her personality was much more guarded than Shayla's, and she would often lash out if she felt vulnerable or threatened. She wasn't one of those girls who cry incessantly or see reason at the first sign of hostility. She bit back, and this had gotten her into trouble many times.

"Don't talk to me like I'm a child, like I'm not capable of looking after myself." Riley yelled to the back of Shayla, who had come to a clearing a little ahead and had stopped in her tracks.

Riley marched towards her friend with the anger still flaring at each cell within her body. She didn't want to admit it to herself, but Shayla had struck a nerve. Riley didn't want to be desperately reliant on that jerk, but she had, so much so that she felt as though she was to blame for what happened.

Braxton, the thirty-four year old branch manager that she had known for five years and had been seeing for the past half year, had been sleeping around with several of the girls that worked in the café next door. Two nights before, she had gone into the office to turn in several reports she had been working diligently on, to find one of the damn whores straddling his lap in his office chair.

The thought of what she saw filled her with such a contorted mix of rage and rejection that her vision begun to blur. With clenched fists and neon pink manicured nails digging into the palms of her hands, she stood alongside Shayla and finally lifted her gaze.

A gasp escaped her lips as she saw what had made Shayla stop in her tracks. She wondered how she did not notice before.

The sound of rushing water filled the air as she gazed in awe at the waterfall that fell below them, into a coursing river that rushed past the green trees that lined the waters' edge twenty meters down.

It was absolutely mesmerising, and both Riley and Shayla felt entranced by the splendour of the pristine sight. Shayla rocked slightly on the balls of her heels, feeling something magical about the place. It gave her a breath of fresh air, as though being in a place so untouched by human pollution was a much needed therapy for her soul.

"Wow," Riley whispered. She didn't like being outdoors, but she couldn't deny the beauty of where they had just stumbled across.

"We can set up camp at the bottom of the waterfall, then wash off downstream. Sound good?" Shayla grinned at Riley, and Riley just nodded back. She was still annoyed with her friend, but at least the rage had been quenched temporarily.

She didn't want to get angry at Shayla. There had been several moments when she had lost her temper at her friend and the guilt that consumed her from her momentarily lapses in common sense was constant.

They had been living together for just over a year, though despite the sometimes tumultuous relationship, Shayla had become the closest friend Riley had ever had. Riley was not as guarded around Shayla as she was around everyone else. The only other person she had opened up to slightly was Brax and that obviously hadn't turned out well.

She was only glad that she hadn't opened herself up completely. It had happened before, various times. When she was a child, she had been incredibly naïve. Despite being abandoned by her parents at birth, she was taken in by a kind woman who had adopted her. Olive was a compassionate, somewhat senile woman, though she had become a mother to Riley, and the only role model she had.

That was until Riley was eleven years old. Olive had lost her job, and it had become hard to get by. Eventually, child services intervened, and Riley was shifted from foster home to foster home.

As a teenager, she had put her trust in people that hadn't cared about her. It was with each time she got hurt, that she closed herself off and refused to let anyone in.

Even though Shayla was someone who she had shared some of her secrets with, Riley still had many things that she didn't drag above the surface. It was easier to keep it locked away than to open herself up to another person and risk being hurt.

She thought that she wasn't going to allow that to happen to her again, yet it had. Riley wondered for the hundredth time, what it was that must be so repulsive about her for the same thing to keep happening to her.

It took around an hour for the two to climb down the cliff ledge to the bottom of the waterfall, as their enormous backpacks hindered their movements. She couldn't be sure, but Shayla had a feeling Riley had packed many more things than she truly needed. Shayla continually watched Riley to make sure she was alright as they made their way down. She knew that the blonde-haired girl didn't like being outdoors, but Shayla hoped it would be remedial for her.

That ass-wipe Brax had screwed Riley around, and Shayla was fuming about it. The guy was their boss, and he seemed decent. Even Shayla didn't realise how slimy he really was, but the thought of him now made her skin crawl. How the hell were Riley and Shayla supposed to go back to work?

Shayla didn't want to go back there, and she would be damned if Riley would. She knew that Riley was beating herself up over the whole thing; she could see it in her eyes. Shayla knew that Riley was searching for a reason as to why something like that would happen to her. She also knew that Riley being left alone to her thoughts was never a good thing; Shayla had lived with her long enough to know that even while Riley didn't trust easily, she despised being alone.

The girls begun to set up their two-person tent several meters from the base of the waterfall, where the water started to flow downstream. Intense greens of the tree canopies overhead seemed to dominate both of their visions. The fading sunlight streamed through the rooftop of leaves as they bristled in the soft, warm breeze.

Shayla left to collect handfuls of branches and sticks for the fire, while Riley cleaned herself off in the water. She felt uncomfortable in getting in completely naked, so she instead washed her face, arms and legs.

The water was cool against her fair skin which prickled with the sensation, and the noises of owls and other animals seemed to amplify in the faltering evening light. The frown didn't leave her face, though.

"Shayla, if you could hurry up, that would be great." Riley sighed, lifting her legs out of the rushing water and wiping them dry on her bright pink towel. She didn't care that she was twenty-five; she still loved her bright colours. They reminded her of the coloured polka-dot pyjamas Olive would dress her in when she was little.

She quickly put her socks and old, worn sneakers back on her feet as she saw Shayla come through the clearing with a handful of branches. A pressure Riley didn't know had been building in her chest instantly lifted as soon as her friend came into view. Why did it feel like she had been holding her breath?

Riley watched as Shayla made quick work of creating a small fire; the warmth was a welcome relief in the chilly night. Shayla plopped down on an accumulation of pillows and blankets that Riley had set up. She would let Shayla drag her out into the wilderness, but there was no way in hell she would go without _some_ form of comfort.

The girls sat listening to the crackling of the fire, and the hoots of owls in the trees above them. Shayla felt at home, for the first time in a long while. She did like the city and the opportunities it provided her, yet she much preferred being out in the midst of Mother Nature. This world, this land, was beautiful and invigorating. She belonged to the earth under her feet and the rivers that coursed above the roots of the trees that towered overhead.

Riley, while not understanding the appeal of being out in the middle of a forest in the darkness of night, she appreciated Shayla's love for it. It was beautiful, though not her idea of a good time.

"We can't go back to work for Brax." Shayla said after a long time of content silence. Riley looked at her with an expression mixed between agony and defeat, before her face became hard and emotionless. Shayla had seen the sudden change in demeanour often; Riley would let her hurt show momentarily, before she forced a mask to guard her true feelings.

"What else are we supposed to do? How are we supposed to pay for rent? We have an electricity bill that will be overdue on Monday, and a phone bill coming in next Friday." Riley replied quietly, though her voice was hard and strained.

"We will figure out a way. I know a few bars that are hiring, and we can work there until we find something more permanent. We aren't going back to work for that noob-face." Riley almost smiled at Shayla's attempt at an insult, despite the situation. Instead, she fiddled with her hands, her gaze not leaving the sneakers that she wore. She didn't need to look up to feel Shayla's intense eyes watching her.

Riley was torn. She knew that she should listen to Shayla. All her life, she had turned away from those who had hurt her. It had become easy; she didn't even have to think about it anymore. This time though, it had become different. For the first time since Olive, there was someone in her life that hadn't left her after a short amount of time. She had worked with Brax for over five years, and before Shayla, he was the closest thing to a friend she had. Despite keeping herself locked behind a wall of her own creation, she had begun to open up to him. Brick by brick, he had found a way into her heart. She hated how weak he had made her, and she hated herself more than anything.

"I think I might just go to sleep. It's been a long day." Riley deadpanned, standing up quickly and moving to the tent. Shayla sighed deeply. The fear she held for her friend ran deep, and she truly did not know what to do. Her attempts at forcing her away from civilisation and the situation at hand didn't seem to be working as well as she had liked, but there was always time. Shayla held out hope that a few days away from Brax and the shit storm that he had created, would be enough to help Riley move on.

She didn't know what exactly had happened in Riley's life for her to be so distrusting and guarded, but she didn't want to let some prick screw up her friend's chance at happiness.

Shayla rocked onto her back, lying down on the pillows that Riley had insisted on bringing along. They were bright colours; yellows, pinks and oranges, all fluffy and soft. The girl wondered exactly how Riley had managed to fit just so many into her spare hiking backpack.

Instead of dwelling on what bothered her, Shayla cleared her mind and looked up to the sky. The stars shone bright through the leaves above her head, and she smiled slightly at the immense beauty of where she was.

After a period of time that Shayla did not consider as being quantifiable, she finally arose and entered the tent to fall asleep herself.

The light sounds of Riley snoring accompanied the chirping of insects from outside, sending Shayla into a blissful sense of unconsciousness.

* * *

**Hello there! Welcome, and if you have made it this far then thank you! :P This is my second story, a sequel to "Not All Monsters Breathe Fire." I am still testing the waters with this one, though I have already hammered out a plot, so I'm not walking blindly into this one (not completely anyway!)**

**I needed this chapter to be one to establish some background info and personalities of my new OC's, Riley and Shayla. **

**This story will follow my own plot, and it will leave some questions unanswered along the way for some time until I choose the right time to reveal the information- therefore, it will be a little bit suspenseful (well I hope anyway)!**

**Anyway, thanks for reading and please let me know what you think. Constructive criticism? Positives? I am all ears! :))**


	2. Waterfalls and Warhammers

The crisp, morning air rung with the sound of running water and the melodic tunes of a pair of Australian Magpies; their beautiful duet stirred Shayla from her peculiar, dream-riddled sleep. With eyes still closed, her nose begun to crinkle as she tried to piece together fragments of her dream.

She had been in the middle of a forest, similar to the one that they had hiked through the previous day, yet it had felt different. It was a rush of sensation which Shayla remembered vividly; it was as though she were able to feel the trees around her, the millipedes crawling through the leaf litter, and the baby birds hatching from the eggs in branches far above her head.

Shayla had felt the life in everything surrounding her, the energy passing from one cell to the next. It was an endless stream of unknowing power. The gift of existence flowed from the decaying organisms into the soil, through the roots of the flora and to the leaves, providing shelter and sustenance to the fauna.

While it was just a dream, Shayla couldn't help but feel a warm sensation in the pit of her stomach and at the ends of the fingertips. It made her feel happy, completely at ease. As reality clawed for attention within her mind, the warmness dissipated.

Sitting upright from inside her sleeping bag, she moved her hands through her thick, dark locks. Shayla frowned slightly as she attempted to untangle the thicket of hair that had become akin to a birds nest.

Riley hadn't woken yet; besides the cascade of water from outside, her soft snores were the only sounds filling the air.

_That's odd_, Shayla thought vaguely to herself as she yawned deeply. The younger girl had absent-mindedly noticed the lack of magpies singing outside their tent, before other matters filled her head. She failed to notice the faint unease she had begun to feel, as though her instincts had started to prickle at her skin and cause her stomach to flitter anxiously.

Instead, she looked to Riley. She could see tufts of blonde hair poking out from underneath the blanket, reminding her of yellow wildflowers rising out above green grassy fields.

Shayla felt the slight tension within her whole body, though she attributed it to the worry of her closest friend. She hated that Riley had been hurt. It truly seemed as though things were getting better for Riley; of course, the blonde haired girl did often lash out, though Shayla had seen an improvement over the past several months.

It wasn't that she smiled more, but that her smiles had become truer, more genuine, like she didn't need to force herself to seem fine on the exterior.

Shayla clenched her fists slightly, thinking about that damn asshole that had just ruined everything for her friend. In less than a week, months of Riley's progress was flushed down the drain. She had no idea how to deal with such a situation either; Shayla had never had a boyfriend. Shit, the only boy she had kissed was while in primary school as a dumb dare.

Rubbing the remaining sleep from her dark eyes, Shayla sighed slightly. The sun began to beat down on the top of the tent, amplifying the heat within the small space.

"Riley," Shayla said softly. When the girl didn't respond, Shayla spoke much louder with nose crinkled in slight annoyance.

"Riley! Wake up, snore-zilla." Riley groaned loudly, her own annoyance evident in her incoherent mutterings.

"I'm going to wash off in the river and change. Then we can pack our things and keep moving, okay?" Riley huffed in agreement, as Shayla grabbed a change of clothes, zipping open the tent and stepping out into the bright morning light.

The woodland glowed with the vivid greens of the canopies, further accentuated by the dark soil and brown leaf litter that made up the forest floor.

The water rushed down from the mossy ledge that towered above them, splaying onto the banks at the foot of the river that formed from the waterfall. Shayla watched as the stream carried on effortlessly, casting downstream, through the trees and out of sight.

Shayla moved towards the edge of the river, placing her hiking boots, a new pair of shorts and singlet beside her. She sat down and swung her legs over the bank, the water coming up mid-shin.

The coursing river felt beautiful against her skin, warm with the mid-spring sun. Despite this, the hairs on the back of her neck stood up, a niggling feeling in her chest causing her mind to flush in disarray.

Despite her want and need to wash herself in the river, something in her mind stopped her. Instead, she just washed her legs clean, then her arms and chest.

Feeling much more refreshed, Shayla changed into the clean clothes she had brought with her. As she finished tying the shoe laces of her hiking boots, which now sat snugly on her feet, she moved herself onto her knees.

Bending over the ledge of the river, she cupped a handful of water within her palms, splashing it against her face in relief. The water felt truly amazing, and Shayla felt incredibly blessed. Savouring the feeling of the cool respite against her face, she missed the sudden and very obvious fluctuation in the river level.

As she reached her hands into the water once more, there was an intense pressure against her wrists. Shayla's eyes fluttered open as she cried in shock, trying in vain to move away from the river. There was no use; her arms felt as though they were locked into a vice grip by an unseeable object below the surface. Despite this, she fought against the hold the water had on her.

Within seconds, the river turned absolutely tumultuous; Shayla's eyes became wide, the water moving up past her wrists and to her elbows, quickly encompassing her shoulders.

Riley had only just begun to awake from her slumber, when a piercing screech filled the air, followed by a loud _splash._

There was no hesitation in Riley's movements then as she scrambled out of her sleeping bag. Throwing her scraggy sneakers on within seconds, she jumped through the open tent door. Her blue eyes darted all around her, searching for Shayla.

After what felt like a millennia, she saw the soaking, dark locks of Shayla floating downstream, her arms flailing as she tried to break above the surface of the monstrous river. Riley's jaw dropped in shock. What the hell happened to the river? How was this happening? Shayla knew how to swim better than a damn fish!

Riley ran as fast as she could towards her, her bright purple pyjama trousers and singlet flashing past the trees in a blur.

Tears stung at her eyes as she fought desperately to catch up to her friend, Shayla's arms beginning to fail against the current.

Without a second thought, the logical portion of her brain unable to catch up to the instinctual part, Riley jumped into the water in a desperate attempt to reach Shayla.

Riley fought to swim above the surface, yet she couldn't discern which way was up. Her legs clattered against something sharp; she almost cried out in pain, but she clamped her jaw shut against the water that engulfed her body. Her lungs felt as though they were going to explode. She again tried to reach the surface, and for several seconds Riley was successful.

Breaking above the current, Riley searched all around her for Shayla. Taking in a poor attempt of a breath, she inhaled water instead of air and found herself below the surface once more.

Her lungs burned, as though they were caught alight from inside her chest. Her eyes stung each moment she attempted to open them. She couldn't move her aching legs anymore; they felt like anchors, attempting to bind her to the river bed.

In a final effort, Riley used the last of her energy, and oxygen, to fight her way back above the surface.

Greens flashed past her vision as she bobbed above the water level for an instant, before she was pulled under once more, even deeper than before.

Riley couldn't find what way was up. Everything was dark, and then finally, _everything _was dark, as she blinked painfully out of consciousness.

* * *

Shayla had been terrified, more terrified than ever before in her life. That was all she could remember. Where was she now? Where had she been before?

She didn't know. Suddenly, she realised she couldn't breathe. With heavy limbs and stinging eyes, she forced open her eyes and flailed her arms awkwardly above her.

Rolling onto her side agonisingly, the young girl heaved, coughing deeply as water exhaled from her lungs. Her stomach curled and writhed. Her throat burned from the exertion of forcing the water from her body.

Collapsing where she lay, she closed her eyes and attempted to grasp onto her fading consciousness. It was as she begun to fall into a stupor of exhaustion that she heard a muffled spluttering, as if the noise resounded from a distance away.

Shayla opened her eyes once more, her bleary orbs peering all around her for the source of the sound. It took but moments for her to see Riley lying face down at the edge of the river, blonde hair covering her pale face as her shoulders shook slightly.

"Riley," Shayla managed to cry, her voice hoarse and barely audible. As though her bones were made from concrete, she dragged herself across the pebbled earth of the riverbank.

With shaky limbs, it took her minutes to finally reach Riley. Her lower lip quivered as she kept her eyes trained on her friend, the fear that she was not alright near paralysing her.

"Please, please.." She stammered as she reached the blonde haired girl, moving a reluctant hand to Riley's cheek. Shayla could see the faint rising and falling of Riley's chest, giving her only a brief sense of relief as she looked over her friend.

The fabric of Riley's pants were patched with blood; Shayla hesitantly lifted the pants above Riley's knee to reveal many bruises covering most of the flesh surrounding a thin, jagged wound. Another faint cough sounded from Riley, making Shayla jump at the sound.

Grasping the ground beneath her fingertips, Riley opened her eyes slowly. Everything hurt. Everything _ached_. She tried to recall what had happened, but it seemed blurry. One minute she had been asleep in their tent, and the next moment she was fighting for life underneath the surface of a rushing river.

"Shayla," she whispered, gazing into the terrified eyes of her friend. Riley rolled slowly onto her back, her ribcage feeling as though it had been beaten with a hammer. How could it hurt so damn much?

With agonising groans, ones that caused Shayla to flinch back in shock, Riley sat up against the protest of her body. She looked down at herself, seeing blood trickling slowly from a long cut in the side of her right leg.

"We need to get back out of the forest." Riley murmured, biting down on the pain and schooling her features into an expressionless mask. She didn't want to show just how much she was hurting, and she didn't want Shayla to freak out any more than she currently was.

Shayla nodded fervently, her wide eyes looking over Riley in shock. It took both of the girls a long time to lift their battered bodies off of the ground, their legs bloodied and bruised after nearly drowning in the river.

"We're on the same side of the river, so I think we should straight into the forest and.. And back towards the edge of the reserve.. We can make it to the road and flag down help.." Shayla sounded unsure of herself, but Riley nodded in agreement. Riley knew that she was the best bet in finding their way back off the reserve.

Leaning against one another, Shayla snaked an arm around the taller girl's waist in an attempt to take the some pressure of off Riley's injured right leg. Together, at a snail's pace, they trudged away from the riverbed and through the tree line.

"What the hell happened Shayla? The water.. It just.." Riley trailed off, unable to formulate into words exactly what she had witnessed. It was absolutely horrible, the sight of Shayla fighting through the supernaturally powerful current. She shook her head slightly in an attempt to rid the images from her mind.

"I-I don't know," Shayla whispered, her voice trembling. Riley bit her lip; she hadn't seen the younger girl just so uncomfortable and unsure of herself since the first several months after they had met.

Riley knew how shy Shayla was; when meeting new people or coming into a completely unknown environment, her confidence levels plummeted. It took some time for people to realise that the more time spent with her, the more confident and outgoing she became.

A sliver of envy crept into Riley's heart, before she extinguished it. How the hell was it so easy for Shayla to become comfortable with people?

Her thoughts quickly turned to Shayla's next words, as a shiver crept up her spine.

"I was just washing my face, and then.. Then I couldn't pull my hands out of the water. It was.. It was like I was being pulled under, and I couldn't get away." Shayla shot a terrified glance up at Riley, before _really _looking around her.

The sun was lingering low in the sky, fingers of light shining and fading through the tree line. She could hear a loud squawking, though it was a bird call she didn't recognise from the Nature Reserve. Shayla hadn't heard such a bird before in her life.

If she had thought the trees looked beautiful and lush this morning, it was _nothing _compared to what she witnessed now. The greens and browns of the forest seemed to jump out at her, more intense than anything she had seen in her life. Red and orange of flowers poked up from patches of green grass and furry moss, the colours radiating as though they were spotlights on a starless night.

Deep down within her being, she felt a twitch of _longing_. Shayla stopped suddenly, her confusion pulsating through her nerves._ No_. She couldn't feel longing. Why would she feel that?

It felt different, almost.. _Wrong._

She didn't feel like the earth beneath her feet was the same land that she grew up on. Something had changed, causing her shoulders to become rigid.

"What is it?" Riley whispered, her narrowed blue eyes looking through the trees that surrounded them. Was something out there? What had Shayla seen?

"It's.. It's just.. Do you feel that?" Shayla inquired with a voice that had become pitchy in places. She was absolutely paralysed with fear. She had been through this forest hundreds of times before, so why did she not recognise this place?

"Feel what?" Riley answered without an audible indication of her fear. Internally, however, she was on the verge of passing out from exhaustion and terror.

"I don't know how to explain it.. But.. We must have travelled way downstream. I don't recognise this part of the reserve." Shayla sounded as though she was going to cry. Riley tried to understand why she would become so upset, when it hit her. _Duh._

Shayla had grown up here; she _knew _every inch of this place. If she didn't know where they were, then this was bad.

This was really, _really_ bad.

"It's okay, Shayla. We will find our way back to the car. My leg isn't that bad, it's even stopped bleeding. Don't cry." In Riley's attempt to calm her friend down, she sounded like a robot, even to her ears. She wasn't one for expressing feelings, or comforting people.

It wasn't because she didn't want to, it was just because she didn't know _how._

Shayla didn't say anything to Riley's words, but instead nodded dejectedly. Again, they begun to walk, holding onto each other as a means of physical and emotional support.

They continued to move, even as the light retreated back through the trees. There was a half hour of dimmed twilight, before the harsh darkness of night fell upon them.

Shayla stopped once more, her breathing becoming deep and laboured. It didn't take a rocket scientist to know that they couldn't continue like this. It was pitch black, and their injuries were taking much more of a toll than even Riley was willing to admit.

Riley had begun to speak once more, when Shayla gasped. Her eyes were wide again, so wide that Riley could see them through the darkness of the forest. Turning her head with such suddenness that it almost caused whiplash, Riley focused on what had caught Shayla's attention.

A small orange glow could be seen around a hundred metres or so from where they stood, through the forest ahead of them.

The girls looked at each other; Shayla was frozen with a look of paralysing shock on her face, and Riley with an indecipherable mask that she wore to hide her apprehension and trepidation.

"What do we do?" Shayla whispered urgently, casting glances between Riley and the orange light of a campfire. Riley stood motionless for a moment, her unease getting the better of her common sense.

If they were to go over there, they had no idea who those people could be. They could be damn hermit psychopaths, or murderers, or escaped criminals. Riley gulped, unable to suppress the fear momentarily. They couldn't waltz over there and expect to trust a random person or people to help them.

Shayla felt the same way, yet it was her common sense that trumped her fears. Riley was injured; they were both cold, hungry and dehydrated, not to mention completely and utterly exhausted. They needed to do something. Shayla spoke up before Riley decided to.

"We need to see if they can help us. You're hurt, and we can't go any further tonight." It was clear her fear was overwhelming her, yet she put on a brave face for Riley's sake.

"No," Riley deadpanned. Shayla looked at her in utter confusion, until Riley continued.

"We need to see who they are first. I don't feel comfortable in walking straight into their camp. It could be anyone." Riley had enough experience with trusting the wrong people to know that she would be damned if she were to do the same thing again.

Shayla nodded once more, and then they continued walking towards the light, much slower this time.

Their footsteps were heavy even in their attempts to stay as quiet as possible. Within fifty metres of the camp, they heard voices.

"Oi! That is not yours!" Shayla and Riley froze in their tracks, hearts beating frantically within their chests.

"I saw the rabbit first, therefore I choose which part I want to eat." A gruff, second voice called out.

"Aye, but I shot the damned animal. Perhaps if you were a skilled bowman, you would be able to hunt your own food." The first voice spoke again, deep but more light hearted than the first.

Shayla and Riley couldn't move. Shayla was horrified as they argued about shooting the animal; it wasn't the fact that they had killed a bunny, but more so the fact that they spoke about using a _bow._ Who the hell were these people? Why did they have weapons?

Riley listened intently as her heart hammered through her ears. There were two men at least, but what confused her most were their accents. They didn't sound Australian at all, they sounded more English than anything..

She stepped backwards, dragging a shock-struck Shayla with her. Slowly they turned, minimising the sounds of their boots and sneakers against the leaf litter of the earth.

It was as they turned a complete 180 degrees, that strangled gasps escaped both their lips at what they saw.

A stocky man, close to Shayla's height, stood before them, wielding two axes.

"Who might you two be?" He boomed, his voice near echoing off of the trees around them.

It was then that both girls opened their mouths and screamed bloody murder.

* * *

**Hello you guys! Firstly, thank you so much to f_ardreamer333, Evakarina, Miriel Tolkien, Fire and Ash, mh21, luvgirl101_ and _DeLacus_ for your wonderfully heart warming reviews! You are all fantastic :')**

**I realised after uploading the first chapter, that I had made a few mistakes! (My own fault for getting ridiculously excited about sharing my new story, that I didn't triple check my work haha) I have fixed them up now, so thank you to fardreamer333 for pointing a few things out!**

**In saying that, I had changed Riley's ex boyfriend's name to Brax (from Tom) and missed some instances where I hadn't corrected this. Sorry for the inconsistency, but it should be all good now! **

**I am working on an original story at the moment, so this fanfic probably won't be as constantly updated as _Not All Monsters_ was.. I am going to keep my chapters shorter so that I can allow for more constant updates, so I hope that is okay! :)**

**Please review, and thank you once again for all the comments, follows and favourites! It makes me so excited :D**


	3. The Fear

Riley and Shayla's screeches perforated the air, causing the birds roosting in nearby nests to squawk and take flight in shock. Gripping onto Shayla tightly, Riley stumbled away from the man, whose face was slightly illuminated from the orange firelight. He held two large weapons in his large hands, drawn by his side as though he was ready to use them within a seconds notice.

This couldn't be happening.

"Shayla, run when I tell you to." Riley murmured almost unperceivably, low enough that she believed the weapon-wielding maniac couldn't hear. Shayla's hold on Riley's arm became almost painful as she realised what her friend was saying to her.

"I can't." Shayla whispered in horror, stepping backwards quickly with Riley almost glued to her side. Hurried footsteps sounded from behind them both, and Riley's heart stammered in fear. She couldn't run, but Shayla could.

"Now, Shayla!" Riley suddenly yelled, pushing Shayla with a hard shove away from her side. Shayla stumbled several metres, falling to the ground with the sudden force. She looked up at Riley's stony blue eyes in shock, frozen as Riley screamed at her once more.

"Go! Run!" Tears pricked at Shayla's eyes as she scrambled to her feet, only hesitating to glance at the countless shadows that quickly approached with incoherent shouts.

Shayla frantically found Riley's eyes before she turned on her heel and ran into the darkness. Her heart ripped out of her chest in what she saw in Riley's expression, something that she had never seen in her eyes before.

She had seen _fear._

A shattered sob escaped her lips as she ran, barely able to see where she was going. Shayla could hear deep yells from behind her, as well as the rapid sound of approaching footsteps.

Her breathing came out in jagged, rough pants. She was terrified, absolutely and completely so.

She ran, unstopping but completely exhausted.

_One foot in front of the other_, she chanted within her mind, as though it were some hopeless prayer she was sending to the stars.

"Stop!" One of the voices yelled out, edging closer and closer to her. Sweat began to drip from her temples and down her chest, as her lungs burst with raging pain.

Within a matter of seconds, several things happened at once.

The footfalls behind Shayla stopped, leaving a moments silence before a sound much more frightening emanated from in front of her.

A low growl caused her to stop instantly, absolutely paralysed with terror.

Then she saw where the noise came from. Through the darkness, two beady, glowing yellow eyes approached her.

Shayla stiffened, her breath catching in her throat. The creature growled again, moving around her as she stared at the yellow orbs through the dark.

She didn't need to see its body to know what it was. She didn't even have time to wonder how the hell it had gotten on the reserve, or how it was here, but she knew.

It wasn't a dingo, no. It was a wolf.

Shayla turned slowly, making sure that she could see exactly where the eyes were. They watched her intently_,_ and she knew that this was it. She couldn't do anything.

A low growl tore from the creature as it continued to stalk her. She watched it in terror, looking into its eyes as it watched her back.

Suddenly, time seemed to slow. The noises surrounding her, calling out in the distance, melted away completely. There was nothing else, nothing but the darkness of night and the intelligent eyes that still bore into her own.

Wait, _intelligent?_

The only intelligence it had was attacking her, Shayla thought dejectedly. She couldn't fight it, and the creature knew that.

Her skin became flooded with goose bumps, eyes not straying from those knowing, yellow orbs. Maybe she could get away, turn on her heel and sprint. The moment the thought passed through her mind, she knew that she wouldn't be able to. Shayla was paralysed with fear.

She snapped out of her daze the second the world rushed back into existence, a harsh cry ringing through her ears from close by.

Her head snapped between the yelling and a sudden guttural snarl, but there was no time to move in the abrupt realisation that the wolf had leaped towards her.

She stumbled and fell backwards in shock, arms flailing everywhere as she watched death in the form of piercing yellow eyes soar through the air towards her.

Just as Shayla's body hit the ground, she heard a shrill noise puncture the air. There was an abysmal whine that lasted but a second, followed by the pain of a solid weight landing atop of Shayla.

She cried out in pain, the impact forcing the air to leave her lungs. Her legs were rendered useless with the incredible pressure, her arms hanging uselessly at her sides as she moaned.

Shayla wished that she could pass out, to just fall asleep. There was not a part of her body that didn't burn. She was on fire, she swore she was.

There was nothing she could do for many moments, until the weight that pinned her small body to the ground was suddenly lifted.

She could finally breathe once more, cool air rushing past her lips and to the legs which had felt non-existent seconds beforehand.

When she realised the reason she had been running in the first place, Shayla gasped in shock and sat upright with a sudden outburst of energy. In an attempt to make herself stand, her legs gave out from underneath her and she fell down onto her backside.

"Do not move." A deep voice murmured close to her ear. In a last ditch attempt to get away, Shayla ignored his words and attempted to scramble away from the unknown man.

She hadn't even gotten a metre away before two large hands grasped her by the shoulders. Shayla attempted to thwart the offender away, but her muscles failed to respond. His grip was unrelenting, keeping her in place as she swayed in exhaustion.

What had just happened? Shayla couldn't see the creature that had lunged for her, yet she could feel fur at her left leg. Heat lingered there, fading slowly as she focused on the sensation that seemed to dissipate as it diluted with the breath of cold air and of death.

The wolf had been killed. An emotion foreign to Shayla's mind began to stir within the deepest part of her being. The dead creature filled her mind. Why did it feel like sadness was washing over her?

What was going on?

Her mind became foggy, as she struggled to keep a hold on her consciousness. Where was she? Who the hell was leaning in beside her?

The stranger was talking, but she wasn't listening. She couldn't comprehend the words that left his mouth. Shayla's hands lingered atop the soil that she seemed almost anchored to. There was a prickling sensation at her fingertips, a feeling of warmth that lingered at the nerves of her hands.

Slowly, her mind cleared of the thick fog that had encompassed it. It left her with a stronger sense of clarity, yet her body still seemed to weigh down heavily with fatigue. She couldn't keep running. She couldn't fight.

How could she? She would be alone and without Riley.

"Where is my friend?" Shayla made out, her voice raspy and worn. She could barely make out more than a silhouette in front of her, yet she felt the grip on her shoulders slacken.

"Your friend is safe," was all he said; Shayla listened to his voice, a trace of some emotion that she couldn't put a finger on. Familiarity? Empathy?

Without another word, the man let go of Shayla's shoulders, instead moving his hands to her waist and picking the girl upwards. Shayla screeched louder than she had screeched in her life, as she was lifted up and over the shoulder of the person.

"Let me go, let me _go_!" She screamed, her whole body protesting at the sudden movements and the sound that scraped out of her hoarse throat.

The man moved quickly with Shayla over her shoulder, but she fought with the infinitesimal remaining energy left in her being. She threw clenched fists into his back, and attempted to knee him in the chest.

It was to no avail, however, as she fought more like an octopus with her arms floundering everywhere.

Despite this, she didn't relent until she heard a familiar yell and she was lifted quickly from the offender and onto the ground.

From the dry earth beneath her body, she saw everything all at once. She had been placed on the ground close to a small fire, casting a bright orange light on her surroundings.

Riley sat on the other side of the fire, a hard expression on her face as she looked with narrowed eyes trained on the man who had just dropped Shayla.

The man in question stood with a slightly amused look between Shayla and Riley. The expression caused Shayla's eyes to open wide in fear, thinking of all the axe murderers she had seen in horror movies look at their victims with the exact same look. _Gulp._

He had long brunette hair, reaching past his shoulders. The hair of the top of his head was tied, forming a thick braid that fell down the back of his head. She noticed his distinct facial hair as well, a thick, dark beard covering his lower face. He looked to be mid to late twenties, with broad shoulders and stocky legs.

Shayla shook in shock. Who the hell was this person?

Glancing around her, she noted four other men standing around, staring at both her and Riley.

"Please don't hurt us!" Shayla cried out suddenly, her fear gaining hold of her common sense. Riley shushed her harshly, giving Shayla a pointed look.

Shayla looked at the men desperately, eyes pleading for them to let her and Riley go. She didn't even want to think about what could happen. She stopped the dark thoughts from continuing the instant they popped into her mind, though it didn't stop her from shaking all over.

The men looked at each other with different expressions in their eyes. Curiosity, concern and… Embarrassment?

One of the younger looking men suddenly spoke up, his eyes averted from the two girls.

"Where are your garments?" His voice seemed flustered, his orange hair glowing even brighter in the firelight. His massive array of hair on his head and face made him look as though he were a lion in Shayla's eyes. Riley simply snorted, looking at him in disgust.

Shayla didn't know how to reply. What did he mean by that? She looked down at herself, making sure that she was fully dressed.

Shorts, check. Boots, check. Singlet, check.

_Huh?_

She then really looked at what the men were wearing. Each of them was clad in medieval type clothing, as if they had just walked out of a renaissance fair.

These guys were creeps. They _must _be. Who else would be out in the middle of a forest, dressed in clothes from the middle ages and donned with weapons, like actual _weapons_?

Not to mention she had just been attacked by a freaking _wolf._ There were no wolves in Australia!

This was getting far too much for her to comprehend.

The man standing in front of Shayla, the brunette, looked down at her quizzically and then turned to the man standing on the left of him. Shayla knew who that man was; he had first caught the girls, though his axes had now disappeared.

Looking over the man who had tattoos covering his bald head, she realised he still looked freaking scary; scarier than she had ever seen any person look in her entire life.

"What do you want with us?" Shayla asked again, another strangled sob escaping her mouth.

"Don't say anything else!" Riley whispered heatedly.

The man cast a quick glance between the two girls before speaking to the bald, tattooed man.

"Do you recognise the way they speak, Dwalin?" The brunette almost laughed, looking down at Shayla with a smirk dancing at his lips.

There was a moment of silence, before the scary man named Dwalin nodded and gruffly replied.

"Aye. She speaks as Amelia does." Riley frowned at them, their conversation holding no significance to her whatsoever. She was absolutely rigid with fear, though she was too stubborn to show it. There was no way she was going to let these assholes know that they terrified the crap out of her. Her expression softened slightly with concern when she looked back to Shayla, her eyes as round as an owl's were.

When the brunette moved and knelt in front of Shayla, Riley rose suddenly and took a shaky step forward, almost collapsing with the exertion to her leg.

"Don't you dare go near her." She growled out beneath a clenched jaw, her whole stance rigid with anger and fear. Riley couldn't let anything happen to Shayla.

The man looked up at Riley with a small, humourless smile, much softer than his previous smirks.

"I would never harm a woman, my Lady." There was a slight pause, where Riley and the man stared each other down. To Shayla, the moment dragged on forever. She tried to move backwards subtly, though it was in vain.

In an instant, the man turned back to her and searched her eyes. With the glow of the fire, Shayla saw a thin pink line stretching down the man's face, from his temple to beneath his thickly bearded chin.

"What is your name?" He asked gently, chocolate brown eyes searching hers. She looked from him to Riley, who had stubbornly limped around the fire, standing next to Shayla defiantly.

"That's none of your business," she spat out, again eyeing off the man. That was when big, scary Dwalin stepped forward, his chest puffed out in rage.

"You do not speak to the heir of Durin as such, woman." Another tense pause. Shayla shifted uncomfortably, searching the faces of these strange people. She smothered the rigid fear she felt at the way they were talking, the words they were speaking, knowing that they didn't have anyone else to help them get to the hospital.

Surely if they meant to hurt Shayla and Riley, they would have done it already?

"Can you please help us?" Shayla whispered to the man who was still knelt in front of her. His gaze left Riley's and found Shayla's instead.

"We.. We don't know where we are.. And Riley's hurt, she needs to get to the hospital.." Shayla stammered her words out, afraid of what could happen. She just wanted to get Riley to a damn doctor.

The man knotted his brows in confusion, before looking back at Riley, glancing at the bloody leg of her pyjama pants.

Swiftly, he stood up and took off his fur-_fur?-_ coat. Handing it towards Shayla, he nodded at her in sudden seriousness to take it.

After many moments of hesitation, she did. It was absolutely freezing by now, the air feeling as though blades of icy steel were piercing her skin.

"Dwalin, lend your furs to the injured human. Gloin, Gimli, Ranár; pack the belongings and douse the flames. It will be two days march to Erebor with an injured human." He turned to face Shayla and Riley once more, his brown eyes twinkling in the firelight.

"We take them to my dear sister-in-law."

* * *

**_Ba-dum tish!_ So obviously this was going to happen, but the girls won't meet Amelia for another few chapters. UGH but I am so excited to write it, because Amelia was my first OC and obviously I am having a hard time letting go of her! Don't worry though, this story is not in any way going to revolve around her! It will still be Riley and Shayla's journey :')**

**Thank you to mh21, Marina Oakenshield, DeLacus, Fire and Ash, luvgirl101, Obi-wan's girl forever, Evakarina and fardreamer333 for your wonderful reviews, as always! You bring many moments of happiness to my days with your kind words!**

**Fardreamer333, thanks for your review! In answer to your questions- this story is in the same AU where Amelia and Josh are, but this story is set almost thirty years after The Battle of Five Armies :) I am creating my own plot in a slight prelude to the war of the ring (obviously there is a lot of discontent in ME only 30 years before Frodo's own quest). I will be adding my own plots and subplots, so I hope that is will turn out the way I envision! Also, you were right about the last chapter- I didn't write in the justification of why they walked into the forest! I added an extra paragraph, but basically Shayla thought it would be better to try and head straight for where she _thought_ the road would be. Obviously her being in Middle Earth now kinda stuffed that up :P**

**Thank you for the comments, follows and favourites! This is obviously another short chapter, but I think I will keep it that way for a while; I don't want to keep anyone waiting for updates :)**

**Review and have a great day! :)**


	4. Race Against Death

Riley flat out refused to follow the men. Her guarded fear, unwillingness to trust and utter incomprehension of what was happening meant that she rejected Shayla's attempts to get her help.

"Shayla, let's go. If we go back to the river, we can follow it back upstream to our tent. I am not going with these nut cases." Shayla looked at Riley with a mixed expression of defeat and terror. The two were standing a number of metres away, both watching with suspicious gazes as the men doused the remnants of orange firelight and packed their bags.

"There isn't another way, Riley. I can't.. I don't know where we are. It doesn't even feel right, it feels.. Everything feels wrong." Shayla spoke in hushed tones, yet her voice audibly quivered and broke as Riley listened.

"But it won't be hard to get back. As long as we find the river, we can get back to our things and follow the trails back to the road." Even as she spoke, Riley knew that she was beginning to grasp at straws; if Shayla had no idea where they were or how to find themselves off of the reserve, then Riley had no chance.

"You don't understand_. I don't know where we are,"_ Shayla enunciated, each word conveying the pure frustration and fear she felt. "There was a wolf, Riley. A freaking _wolf_. We don't even have wolves on the reserve, let alone in Australia!" Tears started to well in Shayla's eyes once more, her body tremoring. She felt at a complete loss; everything she knew and everything she felt had been turned upside down. Shayla didn't know how, but she felt deep down within her that the ground beneath their feet had changed.

Being out within nature was something she enjoyed and cherished above everything else; it was where she found comfort and peace. That is how she knew something had gone wrong, as though something had happened.

Amongst the forest they were currently encompassed, she felt alone, hopeless and completely struck down with a mind numbing anxiety.

The realisation terrified her beyond words.

"I'm not following these freak shows." Riley deadpanned, her shoulders becoming rigid as her eyes narrowed. In Shayla's exhaustion and far-reaching confusion, she snapped momentarily at Riley.

"We don't have a damn choice! You're hurt, and we don't have a way to get to a hospital. I don't care if these people are doing some live action role play, so long as they can help." Shayla exhaled deeply, the anger leaving her body the moment it took over. Regret and fear filled its place, and she begun to shake once more.

"It's just.. I don't know what else to do Riley. I-I have no idea. I should know where to go, where we are, but.. But I don't and I hate it." Shayla's head fell, tears dropping soundlessly from her bloodshot eyes.

Seeing Shayla in such pain caused something to clench within Riley's chest. She dug her nails into her palms, refusing to _feel._

How had Shayla gotten under Riley's skin, too? She had sworn to herself not to let anyone get close to her again so as to save herself from the pain of rejection. Yet here she was, first allowing Brax to slip through and hurt her. Now Shayla had done the same; was friendship supposed to feel like this?

"Fine." Riley whispered harshly, her confusion at her own muddle of emotions radiating from the surface of her skin in the form of frustration and annoyance. Shayla flinched back slightly, but their attention was drawn to the sound of approaching footsteps.

"We must leave now." The brunette looked between Shayla and Riley with a small smirk on his face, before something flashed across his eyes in the dim moonlight that snaked through the treetops. His expression suddenly became serious, and within an instant he had bowed from the waist in front of the two girls.

"I apologise, I have not offered my services. I am Kili, heir of Durin, at the service of you and your kin." Standing up to full height- his full height being a head shorter than Riley, she noted quickly- he continued on in seriousness.

"May I ask for your names?" He looked between both of the girls with a mixed look, eyes flashing with almost uncertainty. Shayla cleared her throat after a few moments of awkward silence, which included Riley staring down the man who had said his name was Kili.

"We.. Um, I'm Shayla, and this is Riley. We were camping on the reserve, ah.. But.. Something happened and we got hurt.. We.. Well, we don't know where our camp is and we need to get to the hospital, so.." Shayla stammered her way through their explanation, finding it hard to look Kili in the eyes. Luckily, Riley intervened and saved Shayla from her embarrassment.

"Look, we have no idea where we are and no idea how to find our way off of the reserve. My leg's bleeding and I need a hospital, so if you could take some time out of your little middle ages play group and drive us there that would be great."

Shayla looked at Riley with a mix of exasperation and horror, glancing back at Kili quickly to gauge his reaction. He stared at Riley, before cocking his head to the side with a confused expression evident on his face. After a few seconds he shook his head slightly, chuckling under his breath as he spoke once more.

"Your words are much like Amelia's were. We will take you to her, as she will know what we shall do." With a final smirk, he turned on his heel and beckoned Shayla and Riley to follow.

The girls exchanged polar opposite looks; Shayla was distressed, and Riley was seething with anger. It took moments for the girls to shuffle themselves to support one another as they walked, following Kili.

"Who is Amelia?" Shayla piped up nervously, becoming more and more worried that this was a terrible idea, and that perhaps she should have listened to Riley. The sudden tension in Riley's shoulders made Shayla aware that she wasn't the only one who had been wondering the same thing.

The other men had packed their belongings, standing ready by Kili who had stopped in front of them.

"Lads, we finally have names to call the two humans by." He turned then, a smirk dancing behind his beard as he winked at Shayla and Riley.

Shayla didn't need to look at Riley to see that there might as well have been steam coming out of her ears.

"This is Miss Shayla and Miss Riley. Come, now; if Dis or Amelia could see the lack of manners we have outstretched for two women, then Mahal save us all." The other men grunted in acknowledgement, before introducing themselves as Kili had done just minutes earlier.

"I am Dwalin, son of Fundin, at your service." Riley gave Mr. Badass a hard glare, her annoyance not lacking in the slightest. Why did they have to keep up with the stupid role play?

"Gloin, at your service."

Ranár, son of Dain, at your service."

Gimli, son of Gloin, at your service."

Shayla noticed the man named Gimli, who looked almost younger than Kili, glance at Gloin with a proud smile. Her immediate confusion at their introductions caused her brain to function at a slower rate, as she realised that Gimli and Gloin were a father and son duo.

Observing both closer, she definitely realised their similarities. Both had a mane of orange-red hair and beards, both with almost black eyes. Their whole demeanours seemed different though, as she noticed Gloin's haughty stance and Gimli's self-assured personality.

The man named Ranár had dark hair and a braided beard, both almost raven black. He seemed to be almost as old as Gloin, around his forties or fifties. Shayla was overwhelmingly surprised at their costumes and the extent that they had gone to in dressing up; she had never seen men of such an age dress up like they were off of some game, running around the woods carrying weapons.

She was again left wondering; who the heck were these people?

Without so much as another word, the men began walking through the trees behind them, their footsteps the only sounds that met Shayla and Riley's ears. With some hesitation, the girls followed them into the darkness that was only punctured occasionally by the dim moonlight.

Riley's leg throbbed more and more as the night wore on. The girls began to witness the sky change from black to rich blue, from blue to violet and then to orange as sunlight crept through the sky and held reign over the darkness.

"Are we close to your car or what?" Riley called out to the men that were walking several metres in front of the two. She refused to admit just how much her leg was beginning to hurt her, but she couldn't continue for much longer without some rest.

Shayla looked at Riley worriedly and stopped walking, halting Riley with her.

"What are you doing?" Riley whispered in annoyance, her blue eyes shining as crystal steel in the morning light.

"We can't keep walking like this." Shayla whispered back hurriedly, making sure not to mention Riley's injury as the cause for her worry. She knew that Riley would stubbornly continue as if something wasn't wrong, despite Shayla hearing the slight labour in her breaths as she limped along.

"Your leg is bleeding again, Miss Riley." Kili had stopped the others and walked back, taking the pack from his shoulders and rummaging through his belongings.

"Sit. It must be bound if we are to continue." Riley opened her mouth to yell out some form of a colourful defiance, but a nudge from Shayla stopped her. Shayla shook her head slightly, her eyes almost pleading for Riley not to argue.

With a loud and exaggerated sigh, Riley sat down slowly as she took care not to bump her leg. Kili had been right; there was fresh blood seeping through the leg of her pants, and she narrowed her eyes at the sight as though she could will the injury away with a simple look.

"Miss Riley, if.. I.. Can you lift your trouser leg so that I can look at the wound?" Kili seemed almost flustered then, looking anywhere but at Riley's face. When he finally dared a glance at her, she gave a sharp nod and moved her pyjama pants until they sat above her thigh. She was glad then that she always wore loose fitting clothes.

That was when Shayla gasped at the sight of Riley's wound; even Riley took in a sharp intake of air, and Kili frowned deeply when he glanced down.

The thin, seemingly harmless cut that Shayla had seen the previous morning had begun to fester; blood and pus oozed from the wound that seemed to have torn open further in a mess of jagged flesh.

"Nakha Gimli, bring me a water skin!" Kili barked out, tearing a long piece of fabric off of a deep blue cloak he pulled from his backpack. Gimli hurried from where he had stopped, pulling a water skin from his belt and handing it to Kili.

"I must clean and bind the wound, Miss Riley. I will not lie; this will hurt." Riley clenched her fists, the dirt underneath her knuckles rough against her skin as she supported herself upright.

Shayla looked between Kili and Riley in shock, unable to comprehend what was about to happen. It was when Kili squeezed the wound with his large hands and quickly ran cold water over the pus and dark blood that escaped the wound, that Shayla had to force herself not to collapse.

Riley bit back a scream, refusing to let a noise escape past her lips. The pain was excruciating though; she had never felt anything just so painful in her life, aside from almost drowning the previous morning.

She inwardly cursed Shayla once more for bringing her out into the damn wilderness.

The pain was all too evident on Riley's face, despite her efforts to keep her composure. She was relieved when Kili worked quickly to wrap her leg with the fabric, tying it off and then slowly pulling the end of Riley's pants back over her leg.

Kili's solemn expression did not falter as he begun to shout at the others with foreign words. Shayla could have sworn these guys were from the United Kingdom with their somewhat English accents, though in hearing the unrecognisable language, she became unsure of herself.

Her concern immediately shifted back to Riley, as she heard a small, almost unperceivable gasp leave her lips. Riley's face had become incredibly pale, and sweat was beginning to bead from her forehead.

Shayla's eyes snapped upwards and quickly found Kili's, who was again bending down beside Riley with concern more than visible in his eyes.

"Miss Shayla, we must move quickly. Amelia once spoke of cars and their ability to travel over great distances; metal boxes she had called them. We do not have such luxury here, therefore we must hurry on foot."

Shayla was flabbergasted by his words, unable to understand. What did he mean they didn't have a car? Why did he talk about them as though he had never seen one?

She couldn't even speak in her confusion, and Kili carefully lifted a resistant Riley off of the ground.

"Get off of me! I can walk fine by myself." Riley exclaimed, her voice spitting venom. Kili just stared at her with a hard expression.

"If I were to let you walk, we would not get to Erebor in enough time to save your leg. Dwalin and I will carry you; we must make haste."

Dwalin marched in between Shayla to Riley's side, both him and Kili moving their thick arms around Riley's waist. It didn't matter that she was taller and quite curvy, as the men lifted her with ease. This time Riley didn't argue; instead, she bent her knees upwards so that her feet would not touch the ground. Kili turned to Shayla once more and spoke in a hurried murmur.

"Miss Shayla." Shayla's eyes widened at him, her brown eyes locking with Kili's own. It was as though he could feel the fear radiating from her, because his expression softened slightly and the beginnings of a smirk grew at the corner of his lips.

"Keep up if you can."

With that, Kili and Dwalin began to jog Riley through the forest, with Gimli, Gloin and Ranár leading the group, and a horror-struck Shayla following at their heels like a home-lost puppy.

It was indeed, an accurate description.

* * *

**Yay, another chapter up! Thank you to my new followers/favouriters and my lovely reviewers! (fardreamer333, DeLacus, Guest, luvgirl101, Obi-wan's girl forever, mh21 and Marina! You guys are wonderful as always!)**

**mh21- We will see what has come of Amelia and co. in two or three chapters, so you will find out soon! ****;)**

**Oh and for anyone who hasn't read my original fanfic, Amelia and her brother Josh explained to Kili, Fili, Ori and Bilbo what cars were in one of the scenes (just in case the reference to metal boxes made no sense haha).**

***Nakha- 'come 'in Khuzdul***

**So, I really hope that I am doing Tolkien's characters justice- I always worry with writing fanfics, because I want to stay true to the characters instead of just taking the name/face and making them my own. I created Ranar as my own character though, him being Dain's son (instead of Thorin Stonehelm), just because I feel as though because Thorin survived the battle of five armies, Dain wouldn't feel such a strong need to name his own child after our king under the mountain.**

**Also, as you may have noticed, Kili has grown up a little bit since my last fiction (28 years since BOTFA to be more precise), and that is due to some things that have happened within his life. You will find out soon enough what this is ;)**

**Thanks again beautiful people! I will try to have another update soon, but I can't promise anything right now- I am busy preparing to go to Sydney Oz Comic Con (Orlando Bloom and Dean O'Gorman will be there!) in two weeks. If anyone is going, I will see you there! :)**


	5. Howls in the Night

Shayla's legs felt as though they were going to crumble from underneath her.

_Just one step at a time_, she whispered to herself between laboured pants. _Just one step at a time._

She had been jogging for hours, and she felt every moment of it. Her muscles ached with the strenuous journey, her lungs feeling as though they were filling up with water once more. From below the fur coat she still wore, sweat covered every inch of her body and dripped down from her damp hair as though she had been standing out in a mild shower of rain.

There was no end to it; each time the men slowed in front of her and she thought they had made it to wherever they were taking the girls, they picked up their pace again, tracking out the best possible route through the undergrowth.

Her feet were beginning to falter with each movement though, and she knew that she couldn't keep up forever. A strangled sob escaped her lips at the pain and at the thought of Riley's injuries. Shayla had no idea where they were going, and she was worried that they wouldn't be able to make it to a hospital in time.

What is wrong with these people that they didn't have cars?

Shayla stumbled over a tree root unseen to her eyes, falling to her knees with a loud cry. She couldn't keep up and she couldn't keep going. It was too much for her. With another defeated sob, Shayla was moments from falling onto her side and completely giving up, when a gruff voice spoke from above her.

"Quickly lass. We are not far from Erebor's Halls now." Dwalin stood in front of her with an arm outstretched towards Shayla. She glanced behind Dwalin to see Gimli taking hold of Riley where the bald man had vacated; Riley's head was slumped downwards, and Kili was looking between Shayla and the girl he held onto with an anxious, almost scared look on his face.

Shayla couldn't comprehend properly what he was saying, but all she knew was that if she didn't move now, then Riley wouldn't make it.

With arms like concrete, she took Dwalin's hand and he lifted Shayla to her feet swiftly.

"Night will fall soon, and we must not linger with two injured humans. These forests have become treacherous." Dwalin gave Shayla a stiff nod of the head, but put a large hand on her shoulder in a bid to lightly urge her forward.

Dwalin didn't leave her side as they continued to run through the forest. Night had indeed begun to fall, and the crisp chill of evening air once again began to whip at Shayla's hot skin. She found it harder and harder to see through the darkness and her feet slipped and tripped many times, yet the man at her side steadied her each time, as though he knew when she was about to fall.

The sound of her own frantically beating heart echoed in her ears, and she could have sworn that it was about to gnaw its way out of her chest. The nerves at her legs felt as though they were beginning to dissipate into the earth with each step she took, and the aching emptiness in her stomach reminded her that she had not eaten for over a full day.

She had run for another period of time in which she didn't want to consider, as she felt like the confirmation of the hours her body had spent laboriously putting one step in front of another would be enough to cause her to stop in exhaustion.

It was as she stumbled once more, a moment away from giving up, when she felt a strong gust of wind on her damp skin. Looking up, she realised that they had come to the edge of the forest.

_Thank goodness,_ she thought in relief. _Now we can flag down a car!_

It took her several moments to actually realise that there was no road in front of her like she expected there to be, not even a single street light. What she saw instead caused her to plant her feet firmly where she stood in complete shock and refusal to continue on.

She was far, _far_ from home.

Kili and Gimli continued to jog with Riley in tow, with Ranár and Gloin leading them, their eyes searching each direction surrounding them as though they expected something to jump out from the shadows. Even Shayla could see their weapons glint in the dim moonlight.

The behemoth that shone slightly lay before them all, towering above as though it had risen straight out of the ground below in an attempt to reach the moon.

It was a mountain, unlike any Shayla had seen before. Not on her reserve, nor any nearby; it even dwarfed anything she had seen in pictures or on the internet.

This was truly magnificent and dreadful; its onyx stone illuminated in the white light that shone from the moon, radiating an intense and impenetrable beauty.

"Lass! Keep moving!" Dwalin yelled impatiently from in front of her, his body half turned between Kili and Shayla as though he was torn between following his younger counterpart and staying with the girl.

Shayla moved forward as if in a trance, her eyes locked on the mountain. She was terrified yet mesmerised; surely she would have known about this place if it had been on or anywhere near the reserve. This was too strange, too.. _Impossible._

"Where are we?" She made out weakly, her eyes moving to Dwalin's. His expression softened for a moment as he looked at her confused features, her brown eyes beginning to tear up once more.

"If you are who you seem to be, then your questions will be answered if you come with us. It is too dangerous out here, Miss Shayla. Your only chance is to follow." Shayla opened her mouth to begin an argument as Riley would have done, yet a piercing sound filled the air, which in turn filled Dwalin's expression with anger and dread.

"Run!" He roared, pulling Shayla forcibly by the arm away from the noise that had come from the woods behind them.

_A howl._

Shayla's mind quickly shot back to her close call with the wolf the night before, and that was all it took to run at a pace much faster than what she thought possible of herself. Even Dwalin fell several steps behind Shayla as she sprinted to catch up to Riley, their movements bringing them quickly to the foot of the enormous mountain.

She heard many words that were shouted in the foreign language that the men spoke previously, before a number of orange lights became visible and moved towards the group of seven.

It felt like seconds before the orange lights reached them, illuminating a number of men who wielded axes and spears of various sorts. Shayla couldn't help but feel completely dumbfounded at not only the attire and weapons of the new men, but only their short stature and hairiness that was similar to the men she had met already.

The observations ran through her mind at lightning speed, filling her thoughts and leaving them within an instant as she was forced to run again. Glancing behind as her bushy brown hair whipped around in the air, she saw several of the men with torches move towards the tree line with weapons drawn. Two of them didn't run towards the piercing sounds, but instead guided them further towards the mountain.

Another howl filled the air, its defeaning screech causing Shayla's stomach to drop and heart to hammer in fear.

It took but a minute for Shayla to lay her eyes upon something foreign but desired by her more than anything in that moment. There was a door, triple to height of her and four times the width; it was opened part way, and she could see an orange glow coming from inside.

Despite every ounce of herself telling her that she shouldn't go inside, that she shouldn't follow them, she couldn't bring herself to face the shrieks that rung from behind her. She couldn't do it. So she bit down her fear for herself and Riley, and followed the men as they ran through the open door and into the orange light of the dark, smooth walls surrounding them.

Even when they had moved inside the warmness of the carved stone hallway, they didn't stop despite Shayla's internal protest. She didn't know how to voice her fears or yell at the men to stop and take her and Riley to a hospital.

She wasn't the voice out of the two; it was Riley with the quick tongue and fiery temper to lash out and question everything even if it were against the actions of a stranger. Shayla didn't have the courage to confront someone that she didn't know in the slightest; she just couldn't do it.

Biting down on her lower lip, she followed quickly after Kili and Gloin, whose movements were becoming more erratic and hurried. Riley's body hung limp in between the two, and Shayla gasped in fear.

_Was Riley.._ She didn't even want to think the words, let alone verbalise them. She just wanted to know where they were going, and if her friend was going to be okay!

Clutching at her chest in pain and fear, a now familiar voice sounded from next to her.

"We must take your friend to Lady Amelia; it is all we can do at present, and pray to Mahal that our queen can heal Miss Riley." Dwalin's voice was grim, and Shayla sobbed slightly, her fear clutching at her ribs and ripping at her chest with dark, jagged teeth.

Her deep anxiety for Riley's health overtook and made Shayla overlook the strange words that Dwalin spoke and the foreign walls that passed by her vision in a blur.

What was she going to do? Riley was sick, and Shayla didn't believe that she had the strength to do anything to help.

"Do not go through any halls but the passageways, Kili." Dwalin called out as they turned another corner, the corridors still lit with orange torches that lined the walls.

"What of it?" Kili yelled out harshly, his head turning back for a moment as they continued jogging. Shayla saw beads of sweat beginning to drip down his forehead and the dark hair of his half-headed braid had come lose and stuck to his cheeks.

"It would be better for Miss Shayla to see Lady Amelia before taking her through the halls of our forefathers." Dwalin's words were rough, but they conveyed a double meaning that Shayla didn't understand.

Kili and Gimli slowed down their pace so that Kili could turn to face Dwalin and gauge his expression more thoroughly. After a moment of watching the bald man, he nodded sharply and yelled a number of words.

Again, the group were moving, turning around corners, winding up and down stairs and around halls. Shayla lagged behind the men, yet her eyes never left the back of Riley's head. It was the only thing that kept her going, though that determination was even beginning to falter.

"We're almost there Miss Riley, do not fall asleep." Shayla heard Kili speak, his voice strained as though he were trying his hardest to reassure the near unconscious girl as well as himself.

They turned another corner, and it took Shayla but a few seconds to see where they were heading.

Within the set of the stone, a large wooden door stood tall and strong; Ranár and Gloin were still leading the group with the two other men, and quickly rapped their knuckles across the door. Once more their strange language was spoken, and after several moments the door swung open with such suddenness that even Gloin stepped back in shock.

Both men bowed deeply to whoever stood in the door, before Kili spoke quickly and pushed his way through with an almost reluctant Gimli.

"There is no time for pleasantries. Amelia, we need your help." Ranar and Gloin didn't enter through the door, though Dwalin pushed Shayla forward after Kili, Gimli and Riley.

Shayla entered through the door and was immediately engulfed with incredible warmth and the smell of roasting meat and baked bread. She looked around, her eyes glancing all around in an attempt to digest her surroundings.

They were in a large room filled with various lounges covered in deep blue fabrics and beautifully crafted wooden chairs. To the right, a fireplace stood with light coloured bricks framing it into the wall. The remnants of an orange fire illuminated the otherwise dark room, causing an almost eerie orange glow to light the faces that filled the room.

Shayla's eyes were wide as she tried her hardest to take everything in, but it all moved in fast forward from that moment onwards.

A woman with long, wavy brown hair stood with tense shoulders as she took one look at Riley and ordered Kili and Gimli to lay her down on the longer lounge that was close to the fire place.

"Kils, re-light the fire. Gimli, I need you to fill a kettle of water to bring to the boil. Dwalin, can you find the King and tell him what has happened." The woman had sharp green eyes that didn't leave Riley as she ordered the men around. She took her lengthy hair within her hands and quickly tied it in a ponytail out of her face as she bent down in front of Riley.

The woman's hands moved quickly from Riley's pale forehead, to her neck and then to the pants that were still seeping through with dark liquid from her thigh. Turning to look between Shayla and Riley, the woman looked at the clothes Shayla was wearing. Within two seconds, she called out to Gimli who had hurried back into the lounge from another room with a large metal pot.

"Go and wake your uncle, tell him to come here. We shall need his help." She glanced at Shayla again with an odd expression, before grabbing a small knife from a wooden table and slicing Riley's pants all the way up.

"What are you doing?" Shayla finally managed to stammer out, her voice quivering with fear. "We need to get her to a hospital!" The woman looked back quickly at Shayla, and then continued working on un-bandaging Riley's leg while she spoke.

"What is your name?" Shayla was almost too surprised and generally confused as to where the hell she was and why these hermits were living in a random mountain, for her to reply. After a few moments to collect her thoughts, she did.

"I'm Shayla, and that's.. That's Riley.." The woman nodded, finally revealing the wound on Riley's leg.

It looked even worse, if it were possible. The blood oozed black from the exposed flesh, and the lady moved even quicker then.

"Kili, is the water boiled? Yes, yes bring a basin of it here. Go and grab a number of towels from the drawers in our bedroom. Don't give me that look, Kili. I swear you are more of a child than you were thirty years ago. It's just a bedroom, now hurry up. Don't wake the twins or Bilbo; I don't want the lounge crowded while Oin and I work."

Kili gave the woman a small pout that was tempered with humour through the mischievous glint in his dark eyes. Shayla looked at him with fear as he watched her while walking past; no one had answered her questions and she was beginning to panic about what was happening.

Once the man had left the room, the woman stood up and moved in front of Shayla. She was slightly shorter than the woman though in the now roaring orange firelight, Shayla could study her more closely.

Her eyes had become warm and knowing as she watched Shayla in return. There were a number of braids in her hair, which were tied with glimmers of silver. Almost unperceivable lines formed in the corners of her eyes, though the woman seemed to only be late-twenties. She held herself well, as though she was very self-assured and confident. Shayla felt anything but that right now. She felt utterly and completely at a loss. As if she could read Shayla's mind, the woman spoke.

"I know how you are feeling right now Shayla, and I'm sorry that this has happened to you. It's overwhelming and incomprehensible to say the least." Shayla frowned, not understanding a word this strange woman was saying. It must have shown, because she smiled slightly as she watched with eyes full of emotion.

"My name is Amelia, and welcome to Middle Earth."

* * *

**Hello again! I'm so sorry for such a late update, but I've finally finished it. I went to Oz Comic Con on the weekend and had such an amazing time- I met/got photos with Orlando, Dean (again) and Jason Momoa, so I am a very happy lady right now :') If you want to see the pictures, check out my instagram (thefinalriotxx) :)**

**Anyway, back to the chapter- so we have finally made it to Erebor. There will be more detailed parts of what Erebor has become like, though obviously Shayla was too worried about Riley to focus very much on what was going on around her. Angst will ensue in the next few chapters, though you will get to meet some old faces (Evakarina- Bofur may just make an appearance! ;)) and more shall be explained (yes, this chapter left a few questions and I will make sure I answer them, but not straight away! :P)**

**Thanks so much for the reviews and follows/favourites! Let me know what you think of this chapter :) Have a great week.**


	6. Middle Where?

"What do you mean I'm in _Middle Earth_?" Shayla cried out loudly, her voice rising in fear. Amelia looked at her with a worried expression on her face and held a hand out towards her. In response to her movements, Shayla stumbled back suddenly and moved against the wall closest to the door she had come through.

"Shayla, please calm do-"

"No, no, no.. You.. You are crazy, you're all crazy.." Shayla's breathing was beginning to come in short and shallow, her voice quivering. She couldn't believe this; she couldn't believe that she had somehow come across so many complete nutters.

"I know what you're feeling. I know exactly what you're going through." Amelia stopped approaching Shayla and dropped her hands to her side. In the light, Shayla could see the unrestricted emotion that filled the eyes and features of Amelia. There was fear there, tempered with some empathy, but there was something there more prominent that anything else.

Sadness.

The surprise of her emotion caused Shayla to stop inching towards the door, almost frozen in place. She couldn't divert her frightened gaze from the woman with bright green eyes that watched Shayla with such incredible sentiment that made something within her stir.

"How do you know what I'm feeling?" Shayla spoke barely above a whisper. The girl had never been more scared or confused in her life, and she didn't know why she was here as opposed to being in a hospital with Riley.

"Listen, I will answer any question you have, but right now I can't. I have to save your friend. Can you trust me enough to do that?" Amelia's voice was pleading, and Shayla turned her gaze back to an almost lifeless Riley. Her face was pale, sweat causing the blonde hair to stick at her face and drip down her neck.

Shayla looked up from Riley's face to find Kili standing in the doorway with a bundle of towels within his grasp as he watched Shayla closely. All hints of playfulness were gone, and he looked older than what he had seemed to be.

There were no words, though as soon as Shayla nodded her head, Amelia moved back to Riley.

From then on, Shayla could do nothing but stand aside and let Kili and Amelia work. It hurt more than anything to move into a far corner while she let two strangers take care of her best friend, but even that didn't come close to what came next.

The door suddenly opened and an influx of people moved into the lounge room. Shayla stayed in the shadows, watching in a fearful paralysis as she looked over the new faces. She recognised Dwalin and Gimli, though they moved out as soon as they had come in; Dwalin with a hard expression on his face, and Gimli with a somewhat curious and concerned look on his.

Two new men stayed in the room however, and it was the older one that moved straight to Amelia's side as she examined the wound and carefully cleaned around the edges.

"We must make a salve to apply once we have washed the wound. Lady Amelia, gather double the usual yarrow, wild indigo and peppermint we mix in our disinfectant salve. Quickly." The woman nodded at the old man's words, and she quickly moved through an open door behind the couch. Kili stayed next to Riley, wiping her forehead with a damp cloth as her lips moved slightly.

Shayla moved even further into the corner by the fireplace with tears welling in her eyes once more, as she watched the other man kneel down beside Kili.

It was too much for her to handle.

"What happened, Kili?" The man said lowly, his deep voice the only sound filling the air besides an almost inaudible whimper from Riley. Long blonde hair fell past his shoulders with several thick braids punctuating his locks; he was dressed in some form of medieval armour, with a breast plate and chainmail covering his shoulders.

"We should discuss this once Oin and Amelia have healed Miss Riley." Kili's voice was strained, though he looked to the man with an indecipherable expression on his face. Shayla felt completely and utterly useless; not only could she not help Riley, but she didn't understand the double-edged words spoken all around her. It was as though she were being left out of a discussion that she couldn't help but feel involved her somehow.

As if her thoughts could be read, the man's eyes travelled to the shadows where Shayla was hiding, his blue eyes piercing her own dark ones. Just as he opened his mouth to speak once more, Amelia walked hurriedly into the room with a wooden bowl in hand.

"We will have to hold her down while we apply the salve." And with those few words, Amelia bent down and began to rub the strange paste onto Riley's wound. There was barely a seconds notice as Riley's eyes shot open wide with fear and pain, before a scream filled the air.

Shayla gasped at the sudden sound, but the writhing and continual screeching of her friend as Oin held her down and Amelia lathered the wound in salve was the most horrible thing Shayla had ever had to endure in her life.

A loud sob escaped her lips as she wrapped her arms around herself in a feeble attempt to shield herself from the sight. Riley thrashed more violently than before, and the blonde haired man had to help the one called Oin in holding her arms and legs down. Her own legs felt as though they were about to give way.

Shayla was so fixated on her friend that she didn't even realise that Kili had left his position from beside Riley to move to her.

"Miss Shayla, perhaps you should sit.." His voice still lacked the cheeky humour she had noted when they had first stumbled across the men. She couldn't answer though, and the tears had finally begun to pool over down her cheeks.

Her whole body ached, and her mind was a muddle. Everything that had happened within the past few days begun to blur into one, until she wasn't sure what was reality and what had been a crazy, imaginative dream. A pressure was pressing down upon every inch of her body, until her head started to hurt and vision begun to haze, causing an inability to see the person in front of her.

She couldn't even hear the deep words spoken close by before the world turned upside down and rendered her vision and consciousness useless.

Many hours had passed between both Shayla and Riley succumbing to unconsciousness, their bodies unable to continue to function through the pain and fatigue that both of them had encountered. It was in the late evening of the following day that an aching Shayla finally began to awake from sleep.

The first thing she heard was voices in another room. They were muted, but she could hear the stress evident in the tones of those who spoke.

"There has to be a reason." A female voice spoke with almost annoyance. Shayla's mind was much too foggy to realise that she had heard the woman before.

"It is too dangerous. The paths south have become treacherous; even the roads to the Blue Mountains and Iron Hills are becoming a hazard for our most skilled warriors." That was a man speaking, his deep voice filled with a tired defeat.

"They deserve to understand why it is they have been brought to Middle Earth." There was a deep-voiced sigh, then a pause.

"You of all people know how important this could be, Fili. Josh and I made it through worse than Trolls, Orcs and Goblins if I remember correctly."

"Oh, and what was that if I may ask?" The tone of his voice had changed; it became almost close to younger and cheekier than before, though there was still a slight edge heard.

"Thirteen hairy Dwarves. I could handle three horrid trolls before I could handle a single stubborn Dwarf." The playfulness in the woman's voice was reciprocated by a husky laugh from the man.

Shayla rolled onto her side with much difficulty, opening her eyes and attempting to discern her surroundings.

She was in a dark room that was only lit by a single candle burning on a far table. The orange light showed to her that she was not the only one in the room.

"Riley?" Shayla whispered weakly as her eyes fell on the bed on the other side of the small space. Within a bundle of dark sheets, the light blonde of Riley's hair could be seen above anything else. The lack of response from the older woman caused Shayla attempt to sit upright, yet her body protested significantly and a loud gasp escaped her lips.

Shayla collapsed back onto the bed, breathing heavily. Despite her above average level of fitness, the exertion of everything that had happened to her was beyond her capacity to handle.

Only seconds had passed when a creaking sounded from behind the head of Shayla's bed; looking up through the firelight and with a stiff neck, she recognised exactly who had entered the room before they spoke.

"I apologise for intruding Miss Shayla.. I heard you cry out, and feared something had happened." Kili glanced at Riley almost sheepishly as the weight of his words dawned upon Shayla.

"What have you done to her? Is Riley going to be alright?" Shayla's panic again took control of her common sense, and she tried to sit up in the bed once more.

"What do you think you're doing?" Kili cried out in a hushed whisper, moving his hand quickly to Shayla's shoulder in an attempt to push her back onto the bed. The girl couldn't even fight against his strength, but she did not concede in getting answers.

"Please, tell me if she is going to be alright!" Shayla shot, her voice quivering. If the candlelight was not so dim, she would have believed that she saw something akin to pity or deep concern in his eyes. After several moments of hesitation, he responded.

"Her wound was deep and in the stages of serious infection. Oin and Amelia have worked restlessly through the night to provide her the best ointments and care, yet we shall not know for some days, until the fever departs. However, there is no promise that will happen."

Shayla's lungs felt as though they were collapsing inside of her chest. The turmoil of the past several days crashed down upon her, many times greater than she had ever felt.

Was her best friend going to die?

* * *

**First of all, I apologise thoroughly for my lack of updates over the past month! I am in the final weeks of uni, frantically trying to finish assignments and study for exams, plus I've had family and friends visit, have been planning for my 21st next month and also working on cosplays for the Supanova Convention and my trip to New Zealand in a few weeks. Everything has been so hectic and I haven't put much thought into this story unfortunately.**

**It also looks like I'm not going to be able to update until the new year, and I am so sorry for this! In saying this, however, once I come back after Christmas I will be in writing mode once more as I have two months off from uni! **

**If you've read this far, thanks for sticking with me! Please let me know if there are any inconsistencies in this chapter- while short, it was a little difficult to get back into the characters mind after having a bit of a break.**

**Thanks so much again, and I will be back soon.**

**Krysta xx**


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